


Fighting Dragons With You

by doingthemost



Series: if you would've been the one [1]
Category: Schitt's Creek
Genre: Canon Compliant, Complete, Everyone Becomes a Geek (Or Already Was One), F/M, Fix-It, Games, Geeky, Gen, POV Alexis Rose, Post-Canon, Post-Canon Fix-It, Rocks Fall Everyone Dies (Just Kidding), Sibling Schemes, Sibling squabbles, Tabletop RPG
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-13
Packaged: 2021-03-07 00:07:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 8,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26297647
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/doingthemost/pseuds/doingthemost
Summary: She knows she can flourish on her own. She's done it before. It's just weird, sailing freely on her own while she's still got an anchor dropped in familiar waters.(Or something like that; she isn't fully sure how boats work, besides those couple of times on Leo's yacht in Bali, and the summer she escaped on a jet ski from Chile.)Deep down, she still isn't sure how to cope with missing anyone.It's been a year since Alexis Rose and Ted Mullens broke up for good, and he stopped talking to her altogether. In the empty space left by his absence, Alexis rebuilds herself through a weekly Pathfinder tabletop RPG sesh with her friends. (She never thought that'd be something she'd be into, but she's loving that journey for her.)So when her so-called 'friends' connive to bring her long-lost love of her life into said sesh, and she and Ted have to come face to face with each other? Mmm, she's totally chill. Completely,unbelievablychill.A Ted/Alexis post-canon fix-it fic.
Relationships: Alexis Rose & David Rose, Theodore "Ted" Mullens/Alexis Rose
Series: if you would've been the one [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2065995
Comments: 31
Kudos: 83
Collections: Season 6 Fix It Fics





	1. Chapter 1

" _Yes_ , David. Seven tonight works for me." 

Alexis tucks her phone under her ear, quickly rereading the editorial calendar on her computer screen. Her brother's still complaining about just how tetchy Patrick had gotten when she'd had the audacity to be fifteen minutes late to their last session last week, but a boss babe has to make sure her work is _excellent_ before she goes home to slay dragons. 

"Mmm," she says non-committally, scrolling through the last few pages before hitting send. "Mmhmm. I leveled last night." She's done for the day at Interflix, but she has no intention of being on time to tonight's game. "I know. I _know_!" 

She closes her laptop, twists to slide it into her tote, and puts on a bright smile that she knows her brother can hear. "Seven, sharp!"

  


* * *

  


Alexis signs onto Discord at 7:09, tossing her hair right on time as her video loads. "Sorry," she says, a grin on her face. Patrick's face is a delightful shade of pink; Alexis wishes that she could have witnessed his annoyance, and David's subsequent irritation. She'll have to ask Twyla about it later. "I know I'm a little late!"

David tilts his head up and closes his eyes, no doubt willing away some particularly-pointed words. She'll never tell him how much her heart aches at the familiar gesture; that'd take away the fun of riling him up. "Do the clocks not work in New York, Alexis?" 

"Ex _cuse_ you," she says, making a show of taking her dice out of her bag one by one and setting each one on the tabletop in front of her. They're a shade of cotton candy pink, with flowers and rose gold suspended in each center. She's _very_ proud of them. "I'm very busy and important." 

"Alexis, you leveled, right?" Patrick asks, interjecting before the siblings get a chance to settle into what she knows was going to be a delightful spat. "Level six."

"Patrick, we were supposed to _level_?" Alexis makes eye contact with Stevie's little video square, broadcasting from wherever she is on the road. Stevie's biting her lip, barely suppressing her laughter, but Alexis knows Twyla really wants to play – they'd been texting about how she can now use wild shape twice a day. 

A real smile finds its way onto her face as she looks from Stevie's dimly-lit video to the square that shows her brothers and best friend in the cottage in Schitt's Creek. God, she loves them all so much. "Let's get to it. Where were we?"

  


* * *

  


They had started playing Pathfinder just as winter was starting to change into spring, six months into her life in New York, once Alexis had started to finally feel like her Brooklyn apartment was a home. She'd cleansed the place with some lavender from Rose Apothecary, hung up pictures and mementos that reminded her of the last few years, and arranged her furniture _just_ so. 

(She still sometimes felt like her one-bedroom was too big, like if she couldn't hear her parents' muffled voices through the walls, something was wrong, but dealing with that was a work in progress. Just like her.)

It'd been a bet between her brothers that David had lost. Alexis can't remember what they'd bet on, exactly – she hadn't really been listening – but the next day, Patrick had ordered the Ruins of Azlant six-book adventure path, and emailed her, Stevie, and David a ten-page PDF titled "Introduction to Tabletop RPGs 101, by Patrick Brewer-Rose." 

**I can't read this,** Alexis had texted their group chat as soon as she saw it pop up on her phone. **I don't have time today.**

Patrick's email had come in the middle of a crazy-busy work day, her calendar booked back-to-back and stress sitting heavily on her shoulders. But the thing that had weighed on her the most that day was how easily she could hear her mother's voice in her head: _Alexis, you are positively_ bedeviled _with meetings, et cetera!_

(She never thought she'd miss her mom. Or rather, she'd never thought she'd have a relationship with her mom to miss.)

 **I'm in,** Stevie had responded a couple of minutes after Alexis. **It'll be fun!**

 **If I have to play, you have to play,** David texted her, separate of the chat. **Don't be the reason that my husband and I increase the divorce rate in this town.**

**Ugh, David. I don't even know what any of this means. Do I have to?**

**You OWE me a selfish.** Then, a few moments, later, he'd added: **Patrick says, "Remember how much you ended up loving the escape room? This is like that, but every single week, with all of us. You get to battle monsters and go on adventures and maybe even have a pet dragon?"**

 **Mmm,** she'd responded, biting her lip as she looked at her phone screen. As much as she was throwing herself head-first into Interflix get-togethers and happy hours after work, she hadn't fully, like, made any real friends yet. No one that compared to her family back home, anyway. **Like, a cute little baby dragon? That I can hold?**

  


* * *

  


Summer nights in New York are sticky and hot, even with the AC in Alexis' apartment, but it always settles around her like a promise of something to come. She pours herself a drink and snuggles back onto her couch as Patrick sets the scene for them, quickly recapping their previous session before they get started. 

He has a makeshift cardboard 'privacy shield' around his notes and laptop, and David always make a show of getting up and moving behind the couch, trying to see behind it. Twyla, who'd joined their group after Stevie told her about it one morning at the Café, smiles, ignoring his antics, and takes out her d20.

"Nice, Twy!" Alexis says, winking at her best friend after Patrick confirms that she's the only one to sense something ominous about the crowds up ahead in their imaginary little world.

"It was a lucky roll." David's back on the couch now, and he picks up his own d20 and looks at it as though it's given him a Vivien Blake slap in the face. "My dice are just.... cursed, or something." 

"You bought us all these dice," Stevie points out, deadpan as ever. "After you commissioned them from a 'dice artisan' for the store." 

Alexis sees an opening. "So if _yours_ are cursed, David? You only have yourself to blame." 

"Come on," Patrick says. He fixes each one of them with a purposeful look. "We've barely started."

"And actually," Alexis adds, getting back on topic just long enough to get back off it. "I have a couple of questions before we do." Patrick opens his mouth, but she's always been a faster talker. "'Cause I don't like... no offense? But I don't really feel a _connection_ to this story. I'm only here because I like, saw that ad for hired help when I was looking for my next gig, right? But nothing's really stopping me from commandeering a boat in the middle of the night and like, sailing back to Andorran or whatever."

"Like you have enough Profession: Sailor to do that by _yourself_ , Alexis," David interjects.

Stevie tilts her head. "You don't feel like discovering the fish people was enough to bond us together? I'm offended." 

Alexis knows Stevie's just teasing her, but Twyla does actually look a little hurt. "I thought we were becoming friends, Lex."

"We _are_!" Alexis says hastily, gesturing with a wrist between them. "Totally destined for that druid-swashbuckler best friendship in this realm, babe. I'm just not, like..." She scrunches up her nose. "It's not home yet, you know? I'm just here for the money."

"Then maybe you should keep going with the job," Patrick says, impatient. "And see where it takes your crew. Because I have a lot planned for tonight, and I _really_ want to get to it." 

"Okay." Alexis shakes her head, momentarily appeased. "Let's go see why these crowds are so ominous."

  


* * *

  


She didn't used to be this way: needing a connection to ground her, give her life some purpose. She used to flit from shore to shore, or something – maritime metaphors have been stuck in her head ever since they started playing this water-based adventure path – with nary a care for whoever she left behind in her wake, or the ties that bound her. And it's not that she's not loving her time in New York, or regretting leaving her family and friends. Alexis knows she made the right choice for who she was becoming, even if it took her in the exact opposite direction of everyone she loves. 

She knows she can flourish on her own. She's done it before. It's just weird, sailing freely on her own while she's still got an anchor dropped in familiar waters. 

(Or something like that; she isn't fully sure how boats work, besides those couple of times on Leo's yacht in the Maldives, and the summer she escaped on a jet ski from Chile.) 

Deep down, she still isn't sure how to cope with missing anyone.

  


* * *

  


"That was a really great session, Patrick!" Twyla exclaims, lilting sideways to rest her head briefly on their DM's shoulder. Alexis smiles, absolutely sure her heart's in her eyes – like her third-favorite emoji – as she watches from a whole country away. These are her people, and she loves them so much.

Stevie glances up from the calendar on her phone; as always, she's the first to work towards scheduling the next session. "I should be free Friday or Saturday." 

David glances at his husband, no doubt communicating in their weird, mind-meldy way, all raised eyebrows and sideways glances. "Same, here."

"Me, three!" Alexis says, running her fingers along the dull edges of her dice as she puts them away one at a time. She's not super into all of that crystal healing stuff, but she tries to give her dice a little intention whenever she puts them away: _Be good for me, okay? No more critical failures!_ "Twy, how about you?"

"Oh, Saturday's best for me." Alexis' bestie pauses, looking over at David. He nods, tilting his head slightly, and then she adds: "And that's the only day that'll work for Ted." 

Alexis purses her lips, very much aware of the fact that everyone's gone silent, watching her. She draws in a quick breath, then shakes her head as she tries to smile. "I'm sorry," she says, punctuating it with a laugh. Even to her ears, it's strained. "Did you say Ted? Like, _Ted Mullens_ is going to join our game?"

"He switched locations in the Galapagos," Stevie says carefully. "To somewhere with better signal." Alexis narrows her eyes, telegraphing her ignorance, and Stevie attempts a laugh. "I thought you would've known, since you guys stayed friends."

"Excuse you, we _did_ stay friends! We totally..." Alexis shakes her head, then nods, unsure of which looks more convincing. "I talk to Ted _all the time_."

  


* * *

  


She doesn't.

They'd tried for a little while, beginning with Ted letting Alexis know he'd gotten back to the Galapagos safely. She'd requested it, clinging to his chest as they said goodbye outside of Café Tropical, but ending her response without an 'I love you' felt like a lie and including it seemed like backtracking on the decision they'd made together. 

Before the breakup, when he'd initially moved away, their conversations had revolved around how much they missed each other, how much they wanted to be together. Once that became off-limits, everything else felt too painful: planning for David's wedding, stories about her family or Twyla and Stevie... even complaining about Roland hadn't felt right. Alexis had spent so long reconfiguring her life to imagine Ted as a permanent part of it, she couldn't talk to him about how she was choosing to go about that life alone.

She hadn't wanted to go cold turkey on their relationship-turned-friendship, though. She texted him that she arrived in New York, sent him messages off-and-on about little things, liked his pictures on Instagram, and put on a smile whenever anyone mentioned him. Alexis had figured they'd eventually at least figure out how to relate to each other as friends. She knew they'd made the right choice for each other, together. They just needed some time.

And then Ted stopped responding to her completely. At first, Alexis had told herself that he was somewhere without signal or wifi, that he'd get back to her eventually with an apology and a pun, but he didn't. He posted admittedly-cute animals to his Instagram, but never liked her posts. He responded to things in group texts, but privately left her on read. 

Alexis made the mistake of talking to David about it when she'd come back to Schitt's Creek for the holidays, at the end of the last year. Ted hadn't been around, and she hated how much his absence still smarted even after their breakup, her rebound, her move. She'd come into her own as a girl boss, had actual true, real friendships, and had somehow created a found family with her actual family. 

(Jocelyn would've been so proud to know that she still remembered that trope!) 

Her career was starting to take off at Interflix, and everything was _good_.

"So, you know, if Ted doesn't want to talk to me anymore? That's totally... it's chill, right?" Alexis could feel David's judgmental, concerned gaze on her, and she scrunched her eyes shut to get away from it. "It is what it is, we made each other better, and now we're just, like... going our separate ways." 

"Mmm," he said, refilling her wine glass. When she opened her eyes, the look of sympathy on his face made her nearly shut them again. "I guess you're right, Alexis. It is what it is."

  


* * *

  


By now, she's more or less made her peace with how everything went down. She tells herself that much, anyway, whenever Ted enters her mind or someone from home brings him up.

(That admittedly doesn't happen all that often anymore – she really is starting to get used to a life without him.) 

But this? Ted Mullens entering the sacred space that she's created for adventures and hijinks with her friends? This feels personal and purposeful at the same time, like she's the only played character and everyone else in her so-called group are her gamemasters.

She's still on video, though, and everyone's watching her. Alexis clears her throat, trills out a laugh, and tries to brush it off as totally fine and normal. What comes out instead, though, is: "Do we really need a level one joining the party?"

Patrick's sweet baby face is all too empathetic right now. Alexis can barely look at it; her brother's smug, all-too-knowing expression is easier to take in. Better to feel her nerves and annoyance than the part of her she'd buried deep down, telling herself everything was okay. "I was thinking that he could come in at level six, like you guys." 

"I – I see." She wouldn't mind seeing Ted, just in that casual, vaguely interesting kind of way. That 'oh, it's been a while' sort of vibe. Totally normal, maudlin, everyday. She's entirely okay with this, she's sure of it. "I guess... I guess that would be fair."

Twyla's radiating guilt even through the internet. Her hands are clasped tightly in her lap, her lip caught between her teeth. She's lucky she's Alexis' best friend, even if she's secretly been conniving behind her back. "It's okay if you aren't comfortable, Lex. It's a lot, I'm sure."

"It's not a lot!" Alexis forces herself to take a deep breath. Having a near-meltdown on video chat is _so_ not a good look for her. "It's just, you know, very surprising, but also totally okay? Like, we're _friends_ , right? We're all friends. Including Ted. And it'll be good to, you know." She runs a hand through her hair, stalling for a hot second as her mind fumbles for words. "Reconnect."

"I thought you said you guys talked all the time," Stevie says pointedly, though not unkindly.

"This will be different! Five hours a week reconnecting with Ted, different! _Love_ this new twist in our friendship for us." 

Alexis feigns a yawn. They always fall into conversation after the game's ended, and it isn't uncommon for them to stay up all night, various combinations of the group, until everyone's gone to bed. Tonight, however, she has no intention of staying any longer on the video connection than she needs to. 

"And with that... I'm gonna go to bed. Love you guys, good night!"

She signs off before anyone else has a chance to say anything.


	2. Chapter 2

Alexis isn't counting down to Saturday. No way.

It's just a coincidence that she was due for a haircut, and her nail polish was starting to chip. Her makeup tote is like, surprisingly bereft of appropriate summer lip shades, so she goes to Sephora and buys five more lip stains than she really needs. She books a mani/pedi and a facial, and beams brightly at herself in the mirror until she feels almost entirely in control.

She'd do the same for any of her friends, she tells herself, if it'd been over a year since the last time she'd seen them. It's common courtesy. Alexis is only being polite.

And if she draws a star around the date in her planner while she's prepping for the week ahead, well. No one's around to see it.

  


* * *

  


"So is there, like, anything I need to know about Ted before Saturday?" Alexis says, in lieu of a normal greeting, when Twyla answers her call.

Twyla, fully owning her role as the bestest BFFL that she could possibly have, takes it in stride. "Hi to you, too, Alexis. And... what do you want to know, specifically?"

"Oh, you know." It'd caught Alexis off-guard to hear that Ted and Twyla had kept in touch so well, but she'd done an amazing job – in Alexis' own opinion, anyway – of pushing aside any bits of jealousy to acknowledge the fact that they'd grown up together. She tucks the phone under her ear, twirling a strand of hair. "New hobbies... if he has, like, any new favorite books..."

"He's not dating anyone right now, if that's what you're wondering."

Alexis stutters out a laugh; was she really being that obvious? " _Twy_ la, I wasn't." She pauses, smoothing out the tiniest wrinkle in her skirt. "But thank you. That's... good to know."

Twyla's voice softens when she speaks up next. "Everything's going to be okay, Lex. Ted wouldn't be joining our game if he wasn't cool with you being there."

"Even though we haven't talked at all in months?" Alexis had finally confessed the truth to Twyla the morning after her video chat flounce. Judging by the way Twyla had reacted, though, she suspected David had filled her in ahead of time. 

"I'm sure of it," Twyla promises. Alexis isn't fully convinced, but she reminds herself that despite attending some recent suspicious seances, Twyla rarely ever falters in her assessments. "And I'm sorry again for not telling you."

"You should be," Alexis says, though there isn't any heat behind her words. A hint of a smile creeps onto her face, unbidden. "Just don't get, like, _too_ attached to David just because I'm not around, okay? Don't let him pull you into any more of his schemes!"

Twyla laughs; Alexis imagines her shaking her head, surrounded by the Café's nearly-redecorated walls. "It won't happen again." 

Alexis breathes out a sigh, a little bit of weight lifting off of her. She knows everyone's friendships, the ones based on proximity and the day-to-day, have only gotten stronger in her absence. It's why she values their Pathfinder sessions so much. So maybe even if these are uncharted waters for her and Ted, maybe Twyla is right. Maybe it'll do for the two of them what it did for the rest of them, and at least put them back on even footing around each other. 

"You're the _best_ , Twy. I mean it. Now tell me all the latest gossip, okay?"

  


* * *

  


The next few days pass by in a blur. She applies herself as best as she can to her work, dutifully attending meetings and sketching out campaign ideas for team review. Her mind is elsewhere, though, wondering if Ted will read anything into the plot of their game – serendipitous meetings on a far-away island – or if he'll take everything in stride. Will he be friendly, or ignore her? The whole purpose behind their little story is like, people coming together and becoming a team, and she doesn't want the iciness between her and Ted to be the reason why they can't solve the mysteries of Azlant. 

Alexis interrupts her own thoughts with a dramatic gasp, one hand coming up to settle below her collarbone as a self-induced epiphany hits her: this is _exactly_ why it was better for them to separate! They were both finding their way towards their respective dream jobs, and Alexis is currently _at_ her dream job, with tons of new films and TV shows to promote, and all she can think about is stupid Ted and his stupid turtles. 

Even if she still loves him – as much as she protests this fact, even alone in her office, she knows it's true – it doesn't negate the fact that she'd drawn a line in the ground last year, in the motel room she'd once called home. 

Alexis is the boss of her own life. Not Ted, or any other man. And while she wouldn't mind a little romantic companionship, she wants them to add value to her day-to-day. Not be, like, the _only_ value. 

It's a small realization, a revisitation of something she already knew deep-down, but it feels like a turning point. Alexis reopens the spreadsheet she'd just closed a few minutes ago, and this time she can give her all to her work.

  


* * *

  


Saturday comes around, and Alexis chooses her favorite out of her nine outfit contenders as she preps for the call. Even though she'll only be visible from the shoulders up, she can't ignore the power of a good outfit to boost one's self-confidence. She puts on a little perfume, too, just for good measure.

She can't tell whether it'll be better to be early, late, or on time. Early means there's a risk of Ted having the same idea, and she'll have to white-knuckle it through awkward small talk with just the two of them. Late means a dramatic entrance, which is typically her forte, but then she won't get a chance to actually say hi or have, like, a vibe. 

(Not that she thinks they're going to be _vibing_ tonight. Not romantically, anyway. But you don't just stop talking to someone for a reason, and she wants to feel out why.) 

She settles for on time, or close enough to it. Alexis waits until she sees enough of her familiar screennames entering the voice and video channel, plus one more that _has_ to be Ted – 'theodork,' an online alias she doesn't recognize in the context of her ex – and she clicks in to enter, too.

Alexis takes the brief couple of seconds of load time to brace herself; she's seen Ted on his Instagram, so she knows what he looks like, but the last time they did a video chat, they were in a totally different headspace. This, though, the addition of Ted's super-cute face and beard – _ugh,_ so _unfair that he still has that!_ – to the parade of faces on her screen? The familiarity aches, but she grits her teeth and plasters on a smile.

"Hi!" She hopes her voice only sounds shrill to her own ears. Alexis laughs to cover up the edge of her greeting, tries not to make eye contact with David, and reminds herself to be _chill_. "Happy Saturday, everyone!"

Her friends chime in with their own greetings, but her ears tune into the sound of Ted's voice. "Hey, Alexis," he says, offering a quirk of a smile. "It's good to see you again."

She has so many questions, so many spare thoughts and well-developed monologues that she wants to share with him, but she manages to swallow them down. This is Ted's first night with the party, and for the sake of the group she endeavors to be good. 

So all she says is: "It's good to see you, too, Ted." And if that's all she can get, she thinks she can be happy with that.

  


* * *

  


"So this is like, a tiny bit unfair," Alexis says, her tone petulant. They've been discussing the best way to proceed with a nighttime escape – Ted, apparently, played Dungeons & Dragons in high school, so he slots into the party without any need for Patrick's rule-coaching – and the rest of the group has come to a decision to present to the DM.

"It's our best course of action," David says, using his favorite 'there goes Alexis again' tone. She recognizes it from when he'd accept collect calls from Bosnian prisons, or tell her when her fake passport would arrive at the embassy for pick-up. "We have to get away, fast, without anyone seeing us." 

Stevie nods, her jaw set. "We don't have a lot of time, and we can't wait until the next day."

"But we like, have to be alert." Alexis' hands show the imaginary path of their boat, cruising quietly down a river. "We can't have any surprise rounds. We all have to be able to like, sit on watch while Ted rows us down the river. So..." She trails off, looking for understanding on her friends' faces, but all she gets are blank stares in return.

"It shouldn't be an issue since we all have low or dark vision." Ted's voice is tinged with the kind of patience he used to show her when they worked together. It brings back flashes of her plugging her nose while he cleaned the rabbits' cage; if she wasn't so annoyed by all of them, she'd almost smile.

"But we like... not all of us do," Alexis reminds them. She tries to instill her own words with the same kind of steadiness as Ted, but she isn't sure it's working. "And this plan is really inconsiderate for, you know, people who _can't_ see in the dark?" 

"Who can't?" Patrick asks, before Alexis can continue. 

"Oh, I'm fine." David's nodding with his whole body, that haughty look still on his face. "I have elf low light vision." 

"So does my catfolk," says Twyla.

Alexis is about to interrupt, but the braggy circle-jerk continues as Stevie says: "My undine has darkvision."

"And I have half-elf low light vision, like Alexis." Ted's voice is even as he says her name, but Alexis isn't sure if she heard a little bit of hesitation before it. 

She'll have to address that later, though; she has bigger issues right now. "Um," she says, pursing her lips. "Excuse me, but I'm actually not a half-elf?"

"I'm sorry," Ted says. She tries to ignore the way his tiny, apologetic smile still makes her feel things. "You're a full elf."

Alexis tilts her head, irritation playing on her features. Why aren't people just believing her? "I'm... like, I'm not, though? I'm a human. Always have been."

There's a brief pause. "But your song," Stevie says. "Where you go, 'I'm a naughty elf.'"

"That was like, a meta _phor_ ical elf." Alexis is flattered that Stevie knows the lyrics to her theme song, but again: bigger issues going on. "And like, a totally situational, holiday sexy-dress-up thing, depending on the scenario. But in this game, I'm definitely a human."

David squints his eyes. "No, you're an elf of some sort."

Patrick's leafing through some papers, nodding. "Yeah, that's what my notes say." Alexis pouts, huffing out a breath. Why is no one listening to her? 

That's when a quiet, insistent voice in the back of her head whispers: _It's because Ted's here, and they think he's better at this game than you are._ Her scowl deepens, and she tells herself it's a silly idea, but she can't argue with the fact that his presence is the only thing that's different. 

"I am a _human_ ," Alexis says. She's pretty sure her face is on fire. "Always have been, always will be. And I don't have low light _or_ dark vision, and I would really _appreciate_ it if everyone _listened_ to me." 

Silence settles on the video chat, the rest of the party exchanging looks. Alexis tilts her head, fixing them all with a glare and willing them to back down.

It's only a couple of seconds' worth of waiting, but it feels like minutes until eventually, they do. Of course, it's Ted that breaks the silence first. "Sorry, Lex," he says, meeting her eyes. She wonders if – no, she _hopes_ – he's apologizing for more than just this mix-up. "You know your character best, and if this idea won't work for you... I mean, we can always _find_ another _path_." 

Alexis swallows the laugh that threatens to spill out of her, unbidden. God, she misses those puns, that face, the way her nickname sounds in his voice. 

"Thank you," she says, pressing her palms lightly against her knees. It's not like she can reach out and touch him through the computer screen, but she doesn't trust herself to not try. "I appreciate it." 

There's another pause before Patrick speaks up again. "Okay," he says, too-brightly. On the other side of the couch from Patrick, David makes eye contact with Alexis via video, shooting her a knowing smirk and a raise of one eyebrow. "Let's get going on plan B." 

"Okay, _great_. Because I have an idea," Alexis says, switching gears as smoothly as she can. "It's inspired by the time I woke up one morning and realized I was at the bottom of the Grand Canyon...."


	3. Chapter 3

On the surface, Alexis feels entirely normal. Some might even say regular, or stable. Between Interflix, the Brooklyn apartment of her newly-modest dreams, her friends and family, and the shoe collection she was steadily beginning to rebuild, she has a lot to write about in her gratitude journal. 

She still isn't sure how to categorize Ted's return to her life, though. Alexis' feelings ebb and flow in insistent, fluctuating waves. His presence is entirely welcome, of course, after months spent wishing he'd never cut her out. They'd meant something to each other, and she'd envisioned him as her forever. She can't forget that. 

But she hates feeling like her hobbies are starting to revolve around a man again. Even if she's managed to not get entirely swept up in her own drama, she's constantly checking her phone for new messages from Ted in their Pathfinder group message, or thinking about what she'll say to him should she ever catch him alone, before the others join the video chat. She hates being in the dark about how he feels about her, what he wants from her, why he disappeared. 

She settles for writing his name down under 'struggles' on the right, then under 'blessings' on the left. For now, until she can get a grip on herself, it'll have to do.  


* * *

  
"I'm at work, David." Alexis isn't actively working, but it's not a lie; she's still in her office, double checking her to-do list, even if she's almost out the door. "What do you want?"

She'd considered not answering – she hasn't really _talked_ to David since almost two weeks ago, before he no doubt had orchestrated at least _part_ of Ted's Return. She didn't want to drag their parents into it, so she'd been chipper enough on family calls and messages, but if she'd let one-on-one communication between them die a little? Well, Alexis has never appreciated people ganging up on her. It wasn't a good look for the head of the Russian mafia, and she doesn't like it from her brother. 

"Can't I just call my sister whenever I want to?" She tries to imagine what he's doing right now: maybe he's at the store, Patrick next to him and trying to eavesdrop. Or maybe he's outside to get some privacy, watching the sunset. 

(Who is she kidding? Patrick's probably eavesdropping in that scenario, too.) 

She turns a little, angling her chair towards her office's windows. Even if he's only watching the sunset in her mind, and even if she _is_ mad at him, Alexis likes the thought of them doing something together. "Yes, because you so often call me _just because_."

He huffs, then follows it up with a dramatic sigh into the phone. "Why are you acting like it's such a big deal, Alexis? I thought you _wanted_ to talk to Ted again." 

It's always been so easy for them to push each other's buttons, and her composure breaks just like that. "I did – I do – I mean, it's _whatever_ – but you didn't even _ask_ me, David! Just went and decided that you knew what was best for me and got _everyone_ else in on it, too."

"Alexis," he says, warningly. She can't tell if she hears more petulance or pleading in his tone. "I just thought it'd be, like... a fun surprise."

"Oh, cut the bullshit, David." 

" _You_ cut the bullshit, Alexis." She hates how his snippiness makes her feel homesick. Their give-and-take was so much easier when they could do it face-to-face. Maybe he's feeling it too, since when he speaks up again, his voice is softer. "I've pushed you before. I didn't think it'd be a big deal. You have to admit it was a good plan."

She rolls her eyes, silently mouthing an echo of his words so she can burn off some of her frustration. "I can make my own decisions, you know."

"Yeah, but were you ever going to do something about you and Ted?" 

"Like _what_ , David? He made it perfectly clear that he didn't want to talk every single time that he didn't respond to any of my messages." Despite all of her convictions, how she'd deluded herself that she'd gotten the closure she needed, she finds herself blinking back tears. "It's not like I'm going to just, like, voluntarily get rejected over and over again."

Silence settles between them until David exhales into the phone. "Okay. I'll admit that I can understand why you would be hesitant." 

"Thank you." Alexis smooths out a wrinkle, just to give her hands something to do. She hates how easily David can take the wind out of her sails. "And I'll admit that if I was in the mood to totally go behind your back and plot against you with all of your friends, I would do something similar." 

David laughs. She knows it's as close as she'll get to a real apology, so she cherishes the sound of it. "You know we wouldn't have actually gone through with it if we didn't think Ted wanted you back in his life in _some_ way, right?"

"I know that." She sighs, closing her eyes briefly as she clutches her phone. "And I'm glad he and I can be civil around each other. It's just... I didn't really think it would be like _this_ , you know? After everything we'd been through together, after everything _I've_ done to become, you know. Like, the me I am today." 

"I know." David pauses, then tentatively adds: "At least you have him back as a friend, right?" 

"Do I?" Her mouth settles into a wry sort of smile. "We don't talk outside of the game chat."

"Well, maybe you should give it a try."  


* * *

  
Alexis sometimes wishes that she had a little bit more of that brazen naïvety that she wore as a suit of armor, back before her life had turned upside down. The old Alexis would text Ted like it was nothing, maybe even call him up 'just to chat.' That Alexis wouldn't second-guess anything for more than just a couple of seconds, and then move on to the next adventure before she had time to get attached. 

She used to think that was how she wanted her life to be, that it'd be easier to stay unmoored. That if other people were getting hurt, it didn't matter as long as she could escape unscathed. 

Ted's number is open on her phone, but she hasn't typed out anything yet. Alexis can feel the weight of everything she and Ted have been through, all the unmet promises and missed opportunities. All the messages he hadn't responded to are there, too, in a neat column of little blue text bubbles. She hates how loving someone so much means it's that much easier for them to hurt you.

Her phone dims, and before she realizes it she taps the screen to stop it from sleeping. And then, in a sudden burst of will, she writes: **It's been really nice having you in the game. I hope we can start talking again, too.**

The message sends, and she stares at it for a moment before she panics and turns her phone completely off. Alexis scoots away from it, backwards on the couch, then gets up to change into her athleisure. Maybe if she does something else, away from her phone, like a three hour run or something, she won't obsess over it. 

So she gets changed, her phone remaining where it is at home, and sets off for an adventure all by herself in her city. She finds a new route, taking comfort in the steadiness of her shoes hitting the pavement, and loses herself in the immediacy of the moment. 

Three hours haven't quite passed when she gets home, but she's high on the satisfaction of knowing she can carry herself just fine on her own. Her face is flushed, her legs tired, and she turns her phone on as she waits for her water bottle to refill. And then there, right on the screen, is a message from Ted: **Hey, Alexis. I'd like that, too.**  


* * *

  
"It's a start," David says brightly, the next evening. They're on FaceTime this time; he's in the middle of modeling the new sweaters he ordered, since 'Patrick doesn't quite appreciate the subtleties of eggshell versus cloud.' 

"Yeah, but, like..." Alexis curls the ends of her hair around her fingers, frowning. David's expression is willfully saint-like, a brilliant performance if she's ever seen it. She knows she's been talking about Ted a lot more these days, but even though she can't quite help it, she's still just as mindful about trying to not let him overtake her life. Alexis isn't sure if she's fully balancing on that line, but she trusts her brother to call her out if she slips. "He didn't say anything about him icing me out."

David raises his eyebrows, pursing his lips. "And did you _ask_?"

" _No_ ," she says. "If he really wants to be friends again, he'll apologize. Since that's, like..." She punctuates each word with a stab of her wrist. "Friends don't treat each other like that." 

"Mm," David says. "The Alexis I know doesn't shy away from telling people how she wants to be treated, so why is this an exception?"

Alexis huffs, shaking her head with an indulgent smile. "Stop being so wise, David. It's very unlike you." 

"I know," he says, rolling his eyes. "I blame Patrick for that."  


* * *

  
July gives way for August, and the city gets stickier. Alexis' AC runs an astronomical electricity bill, but a boss babe has the means for everyday luxuries. She pays it without thinking twice. 

Their Pathfinder characters level to seven, then eight after a particularly-long session. Alexis adds several new abilities to her character sheet, her mind already racing with all the new possibilities for flashy showmanship. Stevie can now quadruple her sneak attack damage, and she sends everyone vaguely-threatening bitmojis to celebrate 'her improved ability to become a harbinger of death.' 

Ted responds with several admittedly-cute dog gifs, referencing his ranger's animal companion. **Spare In _corg_ nito, please!**

She's about to like the gifs when her phone buzzes again. It's another message from Ted, but this time it's sent directly to her: **I took 'covering fire' as my feat for this level. Do you know about it?**

They'd been texting on-and-off ever since she'd broken the ice between them, but neither of them has addressed his previous radio silence. Alexis doesn't want to disturb the peace; it's enough having Ted back in her life, even if they don't talk often talk about more than Pathfinder. **No, what does it do?**

 **I can use 'aid another' to boost your armor, even from a distance, as long as any opponents are within range of my bow and arrow. I figured that since you're our only real tank, you could use the support.**

Alexis bites her lip as she reads the message, trying not to smile. Feats are only every other level, and it's so _Ted_ to take one specifically to protect her. For a brief, shining moment it almost feels like how it used to, before he left and everything got screwed up between them, and her fingers tap away at the screen before she can register their actions: **Thanks, Ted! That's super sweet 💜**

She stares at her phone, mouth agape, horrified. She can't take it back, and the little 'read' confirmation pops up underneath her message, but it's not followed by a response. Alexis narrows her eyes at her phone, her breathing shallow. She wills him to respond, quietly begs him to, but nothing comes.

It's _infuriating_ , really. They're supposed to be friends, or moving back towards that, anyway, and he's still pulling shit like this. 

Alexis takes a deep breath. Somehow, she musters up enough willpower and manages to not throw her phone across the room. She can't call her brother if her phone's busted, anyway. 

"David," she says, when he answers. "Do you think Patrick would be up for, like... one more tiny little meddling scheme? Next session, maybe?"  


* * *

  
Patrick's face is intent as he searches for something on his computer. Suddenly, the sounds of an avalanche echo throughout their video chat. 

(She has to remember to compliment him later, and ask for wherever he got his sound effects from. Alexis has skiied her way out of plenty of cascading mountain ranges, and the background noise is super realistic.) 

Okay," he says, steepling his fingers together. "Rocks fall, and–"

"Everyone dies?" Twyla interrupts, panicked. She turns, looking at Patrick over her shoulder, and repeats: "Everyone dies?" 

"We're not all _dead_." It's one of Stevie's weeks at home, so she's sitting on David and Patrick's floor next to Twyla. 

"I dunno," Ted says. "Things are feeling mighty _grave_ around here, so..."

"You guys aren't dead," Patrick says, suppressing a smile. "But with the way that you guys had positioned yourselves after that fight, the rocks have separated the party." He moves their little figures on the online map, then sets up a barrier. "Ted and Alexis are over here, and Stevie, Twyla, and David are over here." 

"Oh my god," Alexis says, feigning shock. This is all her doing, of course, a little homebrew plot that Patrick had agreed to add in. Luckily, she's always been a great actor. "What're we going to do?" 

Ted shuffles through his character sheet. "Can we climb up the rock barrier and get over to the other side?" 

"You can try," Patrick says, as Ted rolls. Alexis wills him to keep up the charade, and lets out a mini-sigh of relief when Ted's admittedly-good climb roll 'fails.' 

"In the meantime, I'm pretty sure we should get out of here," David says, glancing over at Twyla and Stevie. "Before... this side of the room collapses even more."

Over in New York, Alexis shimmies a little in her seat. Though she'll never tell David, she can understand why a Pathfinder-flavored scheme is so fun to pull off. " _Guys_ , you can't leave us!"

"It's okay, Lex, we'll get out of here." Ted's gaze drops back down at his character sheet. 

"I know." But as much as Alexis is looking forward to having an opportunity to just talk to him, she can't help the flare of annoyance that rises up. How _dare_ he ignore her texts, _again_ , and then have the gall to use her nickname like everything's okay?

She watches as David, Twyla, and Stevie's characters flee safely through the maze on the screen, then speaks up again. Despite her nerves, her voice is clear. "What's going on with us, Ted?" 

He looks up, startled, then stammers. "We're – we're trapped on the west end of the chambers." 

"I don't mean in the game." Alexis forces herself to pause, to filter her thoughts. This feels pivotal, and she doesn't want to screw it up. "I mean you and me," she says, flicking her wrist back and forth between them. "I can't – I don't want to keep pretending that it doesn't drive me crazy that you just cut me off like that. And that you did it again a few days ago." 

Ted presses his lips together, his face falling. She knows that look, knows exactly how to kiss it off his face, but she's in New York and he's in the Galapagos. "I'm sorry," he says. "I didn't..." He trails off briefly, looking unsure. Alexis chances a glance at the Schitt's Creek contingent of their party; David actually has the gall to be eating literal popcorn as he watches them. "I miss you, Lex, but it isn't easy for me, talking to you."

It's a tiny step forward, she thinks, even if she still has to read between the lines. "So that's why you stopped talking to me?" She can't help the hope creeping into her voice. "Because you miss me?"

He nods. Alexis figures Ted's so used to everyone in Schitt's Creek knowing everyone's business; he doesn't seem to be bothered by their audience. She, in turn, has had so many on-video blow-ups lately, she's just taking it all in stride. "It hurt too much. Seeing you, hearing your name, talking to you... I couldn't focus at work. I had to do a clean break."

Her stomach twists. Alexis gets it, really, even if a tiny part of her wishes that if they'd had to have that, _she'd_ been the one to initiate that. "I'm sorry," she says, quiet.

Ted smiles a little, shaking his head. "I'm sorry, too."  


* * *

  
In the end, it doesn't take too long for them to get out of the dungeon: David comes back with his sorceress, works some magic, and Ted and Alexis sneak out. Patrick recaps the game, and Alexis wonders if she's the only one who feels like a turning point has been reached. 

She excuses herself from their Discord, and only hesitates briefly before she double-clicks Ted's username to initiate a direct call.

"Hey," he says, tilting his head a little once they're fully connected. She perks up a bit; she hadn't been sure if he'd take her call, given his previous track record, but here they are. At least his internet connection really is so much better than his first job site.

"Hey yourself." Alexis starts putting her dice away, wishing them happiness and good intentions. "I figured... maybe we should keep airing out a few things?" She smiles, trying to put them both at ease. "If you don't mind, that is?"

"No, yeah." Ted laughs a little at his contradiction. "Yeah, we should." 

"Okay." Alexis bites her lip, pulling her dice bag shut, then decides to just go for it. "I'm not seeing anyone, Ted. If you were wondering." 

He nods, taking this in, and quirks an eyebrow. "I'm not, either."

"I know." She offers him a self-deprecating smile. "I asked Twyla when they first invited you to our game."

He leans back a little, running a hand through his hair as she watches, trying to compare the Ted in front of her with the Ted she remembers. It's only been a year, but so much has changed since then. "I'm not... I've tried dating," he says.

"Me, too," she interrupts quickly, lest he get the wrong idea. She realizes belatedly that he probably isn't the only one sending mixed signals. "I mean – it's not like... I'm not waiting for you? But I"m also not, like. I'm not not-waiting." 

Ted furrows his eyebrows a bit; it's his 'deciphering Alexis' face, another one she knows better than others. She wishes she could reach out and smooth the line in his forehead with her fingertips. "What do you mean?" 

"Not that I think it'd be bad to be waiting for you," she says hurriedly, just to clarify. Every part of her is fixated on the little video of him on her computer screen. "I just mean... so I kind of like, _am_ waiting, a little? Or at least, none of the guys I've tried to date really compare to you? But it's also..." She tries to provide added clarity through sweeping movements of her arms. "Like, no offense, but it's also not about you, a little bit. Like, I love where I'm at here, and my job is going so well, but just because I'm coming into my own, like transcendentally so, doesn't mean I want to be alone forever. You know?" 

His puzzled face smoothes out; Alexis thinks she can see him relax right in front of her. "I think I get it. I mean, I'm in the same boat. I love it here, I love my job, but... God, Lex, I miss you like crazy." 

"I miss you, too." It's so cheesy, but she reaches her hand out towards her video camera. He mimics her motion, almost like they're touching, and she tries not to smile too widely. Even though she had to wait a year, they're finally talking about everything. "But even though we're both, like, 'thirty, flirty, and thriving,' we're still stuck here."

"Yeah." He rubs at the back of his neck. "The same stalemate we were at before."

He pauses then, and she worries at her bottom lip with her teeth as she debates her next step. Alexis takes a deep breath, reminding herself that a boss babe puts forth the change that she wants to see in the world, or whatever, and she breaks the silence: "I still love you, Ted. In case you ever wondered."

"I did," he says. A shy little smile settles on his lips. "I'm sorry I haven't been very good at showing it lately, but – I still love you, too."  


* * *

  
It turns out that Labor Day isn't like, a thing in Ecuador, but Ted gets the long weekend off anyway. "Let's see what happens," he says, and it feels like a promise they can both keep. "Just take things one step at a time." 

It'll probably take Ted forever to get to New York, but she submits a request for that Friday off anyway. Her mind's already whirring with all the things they can do, all the places she can take him, all the lost time they can start making up.

"You know that people don't actually, like, do those harbor cruises here, right? Even the tourists?" She's no longer on the couch by this point; she'd migrated into her bedroom, then tucked herself underneath the covers. Ted, via her computer, is on the pillow next to her. 

"I don't know why not," Ted says, lying back against his actual pillow. "I'm sure it's _ferry_ impressive." 

" _Ted_ ," she says, laughing. Alexis pauses, thinking, then says: "What's this all a _boat_?"

"Just making plans for when I can _sail_ abrate our upcoming reunion." 

Alexis tucks one hand under her head, smiling. She may not know what the future fully holds for them, but she'll take this for as long as she can. "I'll _sea_ you soon, okay?"

He meets her eyes, holding her gaze, and grins. "It'll be a _whale_ of a time."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is my first fic in this fandom, so I'd love any and all feedback! I'm on Tumblr at alamborghini.


End file.
